As most homeowners know already, storage space in a home is a valuable commodity that seems to disappear almost magically. While garages, basements, sheds, and closets do their best to keep up, they tend to overwhelmed with clutter that not only looks terrible, but also blocks your access to everything else in the storage area. For most homeowners, the biggest challenge is finding storage space for all of the lawn and garden equipment; rakes, mowers, trimmers, blowers, waste receptacles, and more are extremely bulky and take up space that could be better used for other things. One of the best space saving and money saving solutions to the home storage dilemma is to design your own garden shed.

Squirrels are gregarious, clever creatures, and many children delight in going to the park with a bag of peanuts in tow, hoping to attract the interest of these bushy-tailed bandits. For homeowners, however, they can prove to be a nuisance. If you would rather not have to deal with squirrels on your property, there are some ways to deter them.

Rabbits are popular pets, especially whenever Easter rolls around each year. Unfortunately, after the initial appeal of the cute, cuddly bunny wears off, too many children decide that they don’t want to deal with the responsibilities involved in taking care of their new pet, and they end up at the humane society or back at the pet store. Instead of giving a rabbit as a gift, discuss the purchase ahead of time and make sure your children understand what will be involved in keeping their pet healthy and happy. With this extra bit of preparation, you can save a lot of trouble down the road for you and the rabbit alike.

Whole house water filters are better for your plumbing and appliances than straight tap water, and consequently, your home will require less maintenance. The way these filters work is by connecting to the main water line entering the home. This means that carbon, sediment, hard minerals, pollutants of all kinds, chlorine and other chemicals will not be running through your toilet, faucets, shower heads, washing machine, or anything else which draws water through your home. It is helpful to have your water tested in order to determine what exactly is in your water, and what needs to be targeted by your filter in order to be removed. This will help you know what kind of filter to buy. Well water is known for having hard minerals, particularly, so if your house is on well water, you will want a filter targeted specifically at these mineral deposits. You can also buy a filtration water softener combination unit called a “water conditioner,” which acts as a removal mechanism for undesirable or harmful chemicals, as well as mechanically straining out hard mineral deposits.

Add a little German accent to your next barbecue by grilling up some juicy bratwurst sausages alongside your more traditional hot dogs and hamburgers. Bratwurst, also known affectionately as brats, can be found at most grocery stores in either the deli case or already packaged in the meat department. If you’ve never had one, bratwurst are hearty sausages made from veal, pork or beef. They are well seasoned, but are not overly spicy. Don’t be surprised if the meaty, juicy bratwurst turns out to be more popular than the smaller hot dogs.